Whether you live on South Padre Island or have an investment property, summer is coming, and with the change in season, it is time to start some preparations. Our island offers a unique climate in the great state of Texas, one that can wreak havoc on your home, but because you have found your way here to Franke Realty, it won’t take much to get your home in shape. This guide to preparing your SPI home for the summer will allow you, after a little work, to sit back, relax, and enjoy your summer on South Padre Island!
South Padre Island Summer Is Coming
Ready or not, summer is just around the corner. Sultry days and nights may give you a glow, but the humidity can do more than add a glow to your property; it can cause damage such as peeling paint and mold. Fortunately, we have more than a few home maintenance tips and tricks up our sleeves, enabling you to take pride in your space, and for the investors in our midst, to provide a retreat for your guests that is cool, clean, well-kept, and so very appealing as summer on South Padre Island draws even closer.
What the Island Is Like
Before we get into the details of what you need to do to prepare for summer on South Padre Island, let’s take a few minutes to discuss what the season is like.
Temperatures will range from the 80s to the 90s during the day and rarely drop below the mid-70s at night, ensuring everyone stays warm and toasty, though coastal breezes will help keep you comfortable. Although we are talking about home maintenance tips and tricks, on a more personal level, the heat index is strong, and as such, sunscreen, sun hats, and sunglasses should be worn whenever outside.
Humidity is high, and summer is our rainy season, so expect thunderstorms that roll in and then roll out just as quickly. Summer is also prime hurricane season, but for the most part, our beautiful island home is rarely affected by these storms, generally suffering nothing worse than heavy rains.
Summer Vibes on South Padre Island
The summer vibe will convince you that there is nowhere else you want to live or own a vacation rental property. Laidback and casual, the magic of possibilities fills your heart, and because summer is also our busiest tourist season, the excitement of happy travelers will permeate the air.
Remember the joy you felt as a child on the first day of summer vacation, looking forward to those long days that stretched out before you, knowing there would be sprinklers to run through, red popsicles to devour, and long hours lying under trees, making whistles out of grass blades? THAT is the vibe you will feel every summer on South Padre Island, and it is a huge check in the pro column when deciding whether you should make the big move to Texas!
Needed Maintenance for Your Home
Now that you know why South Padre Island summers are going to be your favorite time of the year, it is time to get to our home maintenance tips and tricks. Below, we have listed some of the top prep items.
Air Conditioning Check
In colder climes, it is the heater that is most important, but the tropical life of South Padre Island summers ensures that air conditioning will be your best friend—or your worst enemy, if you choose NOT to get your equipment checked. The spring months are the best time to do so, especially as the prices will be a bit lower.
Besides checking the mechanical aspects of your equipment and ensuring the motor runs smoothly, there are also “cosmetic” issues that can escalate if left untreated. Salt air is corrosive, degrading the metal and leaving it looking like an eyesore, eventually even causing motor failure.
Pool Cleaning and Check
When you first began your search for your new home sweet home on SPI, we have a feeling that one of your requirements was a pool. A private swimming pool offers all sorts of benefits—the ability to host pool parties, enjoy midnight swims, and stay cool while the rest of your neighbors are sweating—but they do require regular maintenance and cleaning.
It is recommended that a pool be drained every other year to help combat high TDS (total dissolved solids), stabilizer buildup, and prevent excessive calcium hardness. This should be done in late winter or early spring, before temperatures rise above 75 to 80 degrees, to avoid damaging your pool surface. This is also a good time to acid wash the surface (once every 5 years at most) and pumice away any hard-water stains on your tile.
Prep for Higher Electricity Usage
If you are coming from a colder climate (or another warm-weather climate), you already know that during at least one season out of the year, electricity usage will be high, and bills will be higher as well. It’s a fact of life that South Padre Island summers lead to high utility bills, and we try to prepare for it in as many ways as possible.
AEP (American Electric Power) is our main electric company, and they offer time-of-use plans that are customizable to your needs, helping to reduce your electric bills. They offer lower rates on nights, holidays, and weekends, so we save our big-ticket usage for those times, doing meal prep and laundry on weekends and running dishwashers after we go to bed. Even your pool can be set up so your pump runs during cheap time, enabling you to save a little money as well.
Planting trees near your home will help shade the spaces and let your AC run less. Keeping the doors shut and lights turned off in rooms you aren’t using, and unplugging phone or laptop chargers when not in use, will help as well.
Let Franke Realty Help with Your Property Needs
Ready to move to South Padre Island, but not quite sure where to start? We’ve got you covered! We’ve been here since the beginning, and no one knows the island better than we do. Give Franke Realty a call today, and let’s work together to find your forever home!
